Press Release

Estate, land and letting agents must act now to prevent paying for the thaw

16 January 2009

Severn Trent Water has urged estate and letting agents across the Midlands and mid- Wales to check their pipework for leaks and bursts, following this week’s thaw.

Fraser Pithie, senior operations manager, at Severn Trent Water, said: “We’ve written to all estate and lettings agencies in our region so that they know about potential leakage in and around private and commercial properties following the thaw. Severn Trent is concerned about the serious damage that may be caused by burst pipes that no one has detected yet.

“Bursts on farms, or in and around empty or little-used buildings could simply run until discovered weeks or even months later. Leaving these bursts unattended could be expensive for businesses already struggling in the current economic circumstances.”

A challenge for land-owners, and for Severn Trent, is that not all bursts are visible. And sometimes even when there are clear signs of a leak, it may not be clear where the source of the burst actually lies. Unheated and unoccupied houses and commercial premises are at greater risk than others following the recent cold snap, as owners may not even have noticed leaks yet.

Fraser added: “While some of this leakage is on Severn Trent’s network – and we are concentrating our efforts on repairing the leaks – we also know that there is leakage related to customers’ properties.

“All businesses that may be affected should check their pipework and systems as soon as possible. This way, they could be preventing or limiting consequential damage for themselves and stopping future problems.”